Having the right kind of insurance is central to sound financial planning. Some of us may have some form of insurance but very few really understand what it is or why one must have it. For most Indians insurance is a form of investment or a superb tax saving avenue. Ask an average person about his/her investments and they will proudly mention an insurance product as part of their core investments. Of the approximately 5% of Indians that are insured the proportion of those adequately insured is much lower. Very few of the insured view insurance as purely that. There is perhaps no other financial product that has witnessed such rampant mis-selling at the hands of agents who are over enthusiastic in selling products linking insurance to investment earning them fat commissions.

What is Insurance?

Insurance is a way of spreading out significant financial risk of a person or business entity to a large group of individuals or business entities in the occurrence of an unfortunate event that is predefined. The cost of being insured is the monthly or annual compensation paid to the insurance company. In the purest form of insurance if the predefined event does not occur until the period specified the money paid as compensation is not retrieved. Insurance is effectively a means of spreading risk among a pool of people who are insured and lighten their financial burden in the event of a shock.

Insured and Insurer

When you seek protection against financial risk and make a contract with an insurance provider you become the insured and the insurance company becomes your insurer.

Sum assured

In Life Insurance this is the amount of money the insurer promises to pay when the insured dies before the predefined time. This does not include bonuses added in case of non-term insurance. In non-life insurance this guaranteed amount may be called as Insurance Cover.

Premium

For the protection against financial risk an insurer provides, the insured must pay compensation. This is known as premium. They may be paid annually, quarterly, monthly or as decided in the contract. Total amount of premiums paid is several times lesser than the insurance cover or it wouldn’t make much sense to seek insurance at all. Factors that determine premium are the cover, number of years for which insurance is sought, age of the insured (individual, vehicle, etc), to name a few.

Nominee

The beneficiary who is specified by the insured to receive the sum assured and other benefits, if any is the nominee. In case of life insurance it must be another person apart from the insured.

Policy Term

The number of years you want protection for is the term of policy. Term is decided by the insured at the time of purchasing the insurance policy.

Rider

Certain insurance policies may offer additional features as add-ons apart from the actual cover. These can be availed by paying extra premiums. If those features were to be bought separately they would be more expensive. For instance you could add on a personal accident rider with your life insurance.

Surrender Value and Paid-up Value

If you want to exit a policy before its term ends you can discontinue it and take back your money. The amount the insurer will pay you in this instance is called the surrender value. The policy ceases to exist. Instead if you just stop paying the premiums mid way but do not withdraw money the amount is called as paid-up. At the term’s end the insurer pays you in proportion of the paid-up value.

Now that you know the terms this is how insurance works in plain words. An insurance company pools premiums from a large group of people who want to insure against a certain kind of loss. With the help of its actuaries the company comes up with statistical analysis of the probability of actual loss happening in a certain number of people and fixes premiums taking into account other factors as mentioned earlier. It works on the fact that not all insured will suffer loss at the same time and many may not suffer the loss at all within the time of contract.

Types of Insurance

Potentially any risk that can be quantified in terms of money can be insured. To protect loved ones from loss of income due to immature death one can have a life insurance policy. To protect yourself and your family against unforeseen medical expenses you can opt for a Mediclaim policy. To protect your vehicle against robbery or damage in accidents you can have a motor insurance policy. To protect your home against theft, damage due to fire, flood and other perils you can choose a home insurance.

Most popular insurance forms in India are life insurance, health insurance and motor insurance. Apart from these there are other forms as well which are discussed in brief in the following paragraphs. The insurance sector is regulated and monitored by IRDA (Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority).

Life Insurance

This form of insurance provides cover against financial risk in the event of premature death of the insured. There are 24 life insurance companies playing in this arena of which Life Insurance Corporation of India is a public sector company. There are several forms of life insurance policies the simplest form of which is term plan. The other complex policies are endowment plan, whole life plan, money back plan, ULIPs and annuities.

General Insurance

All other insurance policies besides Life Insurance fall under General Insurance. There are 24 general insurance companies in India of which 4 namely National Insurance Company Ltd, New India Assurance Company Ltd, Oriental Insurance Company Ltd and United India Insurance Company Ltd are in the public sector domain.

The biggest pie of non-life insurance in terms of premiums underwritten is shared by motor insurance followed by engineering insurance and health insurance. Other forms of insurance offered by companies in India are home insurance, travel insurance, personal accident insurance, and business insurance.

Buying Insurance

There are an umpteen number of policies to choose from. Because we cannot foresee our future and stop unpleasant things from happening, having an insurance cover is a necessity. But you need to choose carefully. Don’t simply go with what the agent tells you. Read policy documents to know what is covered, what features are offered and what events are excluded from being insured.

1. Know your Needs

Determine what asset or incident must be protected against loss/damage. Is it you life, health, vehicle, home? Next determine what kinds of damage or danger exactly would the assets be most probably be exposed to. This will tell you what features you should be looking for in a policy. Of course there will be losses which cannot be foreseen and the cost of dealing with them can be very high. For instance nobody can predict that they’ll never suffer from critical illnesses no matter if they’re perfectly healthy at present.

The biggest mistake while it comes to buying insurance, particularly life insurance is to view it as an investment. Clubbing insurance and investment in a single product is a poor idea. You lose out on both fronts because for the premiums you’re paying more cover could’ve been got in a term plan and if the premiums were invested in better instruments your returns could’ve been several times more.

Be wary of agents who want to talk you into buying unnecessary policies like child life insurance, credit card insurance, unemployment insurance and so on. Instead of buying separate insurance for specific assets or incidents look for policies that cover a host of possible events under the same cover. Whenever possible choose riders that make sense instead of buying them separately. Unless there is a fair chance of an event happening you do not need insurance for it. For instance unless you are very prone to accidents and disability due to your nature of work or other reasons you do not need an Accident Insurance policy. A good Life Insurance policy with accidental death rider or waiver of premium rider or a disability income rider will do the job.

2. Understand Product Features and Charges

The worst way of choosing an insurance product or insurer is to blindly follow the recommendation of an agent or a friend. The good way to do it is to shop around for products that suit your need and filter out the ones offering lower premiums for similar terms like age, amount of cover, etc. All details you need about the product features and charges will be provided on the company’s website. Many insurance policies can now be bought online. Buying online is smarter because premiums are lower due to elimination of agent fees. If buying offline in case of life insurance, tell the agent that you’re interested only in term insurance.

Before you sign on the contract make sure you have understood what items are covered and what items are exempted from the cover. It would be so devastating to learn in the event of damage or loss that the item you hoped to cover with the insurance was actually excluded. So many people rush to their insurers after being treated for diseases only to realize that the particular disease was excluded. Understand details like when the cover begins and ends and how claims can be filed and losses be reported.

Don’t choose an insurance company because your neighbourhood friend is their agent and never let them coax you into buying from them. Insurance premiums run for years and it means a sizeable amount of money. Apart from the premiums charged look for the service provided. When you are faced with a peril you want the claims collection processed to be complicated with non-cooperating staff in the insurance company’s office. Seek answers from people who have had previous experience with the company for questions like how customer friendly and responsive the company is when it comes to handling claims.

3. Evaluate and Upgrade in Time

As you walk from one life stage to another or when the asset insured changes your policies must be reviewed. Perhaps your cover will need to be increased (or decreased) or you’ll need to top it up with a rider. Some instances when you need to review your cover are when you getting married, when you have children, when your income increases your decreases substantially, when you’re buying a house/car and when you’re responsible for your ageing parents.

Commercial insurance, though important, can be very costly indeed. But however costly it can be, there are ways of actually getting a policy you can truly afford. By following a few easy tips you can end up having a policy you can brag about to your friends.

Get A Consultant

One of the best ways to actually lay hold of a cheap insurance policy is by ensuring that you work with a commercial insurance consultant or an agent. Insurance consultants are those professionals who are known for being able to give clients expert guidance on what they believe is the “best way to go.” You are guaranteed to get bias-free advice which is not meant to push you into following a particular direction, which in most cases is a particular insurance company.

Another way to approach this is by getting an agent to carry out the task of looking for the right insurance for you. When you do this it is important to actually decide on what you want so that the agent knows exactly what to look for. But you should expect to pay a service fee for such a service.

Make Annual Payments

Making annual payments on commercial insurance is very similar to buying goods in bulk; it is a great deal cheaper. So if you have it within your financial capabilities to pay a single lump sum payment, do so. It will do you a world of good. Plus, there is something else which is even more attractive than this. In reality, you are not liable to pay the interest you would otherwise pay if you were working with a monthly installment package. Yes, several companies actually offer interest free insurance packages to clients who make a commitment to paying their premiums on an annual basis.

Do Your Research

No matter how impulsive you are, never be in a hurry to secure an insurance contract. Patience is a virtue and it impacts heavily on whether or not you get an affordable package. For your research purposes you will have to go online where you can get quotes on insurance, at an extra charge or for free. You should opt for free insurance quotes as these ones are the safest way to go at it.

Comprehensive quotes which are normally paid for are generally associated with the risk of identity theft and fraud because you will be required to pass on very personal information which is deemed crucial in order to give you a more accurate estimate on insurance premiums. By doing research you will be able to compare insurance policies and be in a much stronger position to decide on which is the right one for you.

Multiple types of insurances are available in the market and numerous brokers are in the field today trying to induce prospective commercial insurance clients to go for one of the plans offered by them. However, the relationship between such clients and the broker is something special in nature.

Insurance Coverage Types

As the best possible solution for any financial exigencies, there are multiple types of packages on offer for the prospective clients. Basic insurance policies would offer coverage on life, person, and property of the client. They will cover damages sustained by the policy holder, his or her property, and even others covered under the terms and conditions of the plan adopted. Each of the plans would be different and so would be the coverage offered.

Insurance Claims

One of the basic requirements for any of the clients including those opting for landlord’s insurance is that their claims are quickly addressed. Normally the insurance company will offer cash compensation for the insured in case of any damages sustained physically or property wise. For instance; the insurance offered to the landlords could include the legal as well as repair costs of the property in question and much more.

Online Insurance Brokers

Internet has become an integral part of modern life. Most people wish to conclude all transactions including the insurance deals online. In result a host of insurance brokers are now working online as well providing insurance deals for the prospective clients. While there are multiple types of insurance plans available in the market and the broker deals also vary widely, they take special interest in selling some of the plans that gives maximum profits like the life insurances and automobile insurances. That does not mean they will shrink away from offering landlord or other commercial insurances since every bit of profit earned can add to their wealth.

Low Profit on Business Insurance

Relationship of commercial clients with the brokers may not be as smooth as in case of the life insured or vehicle insurers. The reason is that commissions and profits are not as lucrative in these cases like the other two. However with rapid industrialization all over the chances of making more profits with more number of deals are increasing. This has inspired many brokers to go in a big way for the clients that are commercial in nature and that include landlord insurance packages.

Boosting Brokerage with Commercial Leads

All said and done, in the commercialized environment today, commercial clients of them offer a huge prospect for the insurance brokers. Even though the profits and commissions are smaller in comparison to individual life insurance and automobile insurance, together the profits and commissions earned could be substantial due to numerical strength of such clients.